Okay so he makes all the mistakes of a newbie thin-skinned 14 year-old with 26 readers who feels compelled to respond to any and all who criticize him (note to Joe: breathe), but whereas most of us have had learning curves that allowed us to make those kinds of mistakes when nobody was watching he is doing it in a highly public place where they all get magnified. Oh sure, I think he's still pretty much full of shit (and himself) but I don't see any of his peers who spend their spare time taking pot shots at bloggers willing to stand up to that kind of unmoderated comment section. He's getting hammered, and that takes some guts.

So good for you, Joe. And a word of advice: it is acceptable to go in and take some of the really disgusting comments out. It's not considered censorship (except by the adolescents who leave them and don't really know the difference) and it keeps the place tidy so the grownups will want to hang around. Most people will expect anyone to delete comments that talk about "your mom's p***y" from any blog, and Time Magazine is no exception.

Jane Hamsher

Jane is the founder of Firedoglake.com. Her work has also appeared on the Huffington Post, Alternet and The American Prospect. She’s the author of the best selling book Killer Instinct and has produced such films Natural Born Killers and Permanent Midnight. She lives in Washington DC.Subscribe in a reader